Out of the Darkness
by superhypersugarkitty
Summary: Count Dooku buys Anakin during TPM and leaves him alone on a strange planet. Little does Ani know that this strange planet is the evil Korriban...AP Way AU.
1. Prologue: Abandoned

Title: Out of the Darkness.

Author: SHSK (me)

Starts in the timeframe of TPM, but continues into ROTS time.

Characters: Anakin, Padme, Obi mainly. Others will come in.

Genre: A bit of Angst, A/P romance.

Summary: Dooku learns about Anakin during the blockade of Naboo, sees him as a threat to his power, and decides to 'remove' the threat. He takes Ani to Korriban and leaves him there.

Notes: Padme's ship doesn't land on Tattooine. They make it to Coruscant and go back to Naboo like in the canon, and win the battle w/out Ani. Obviously, this is way AU.

Other Notes: I haven't read about Korriban much, so while I do have a little to base it on, my descriptions might not be that accurate.

Prologue:

_Korriban_

It had been two days since the old man had come to Tattooine, bought Anakin, and left him on this odd planet. He had never learned his name-in fact, the man hardly spoke at all. From what little he did say, he perceived Anakin as a threat that had to be removed.

How he could be a threat was a total mystery to Anakin. He was only a slave after all. _Not anymore,_ he corrected himself,_ he didn't do much, but at least he set me free._

But his happiness at having his freedom was shortlived. He had no idea where he was. It looked like some sort of mountain planet, and there were small ruins and what could only be statues scattered around. Who the statues were supposed to be was beyond him.

But it _felt_ like the most foreboding place he had ever heard of. He could practically feel darkness surrounding the entire place, though the sun shone brightly in the sky. Anakin shook his head slightly; it was difficult to get used to seeing one sun in the sky, instead of the two he was used to. Glancing around at the sky, he saw one of the planet's 7 moons hanging low in the sky. _Seven moons. Seven moons and one sun…this place is bizarre…_

Stopping to catch his breath, he took in his surroundings once more. All he could see around him were mountains and cliffs, and by the look of it, there was little chance of finding other people here.

Taking a deep breath, he readjusted his bag on his shoulders and continued on. Climbing the small incline in front of him, he glanced ahead and immediately froze as he stood. Directly down the slope in front of him was a small valley, which held the largest, most magnificent building he had ever set eyes on.

Awestruck, he slowly found the power to move his legs, which now felt like lead. Still staring at the structure in veneration, he slowly made his way down the rocky slope towards the breathtaking sight. Anakin didn't notice that the closer he got to the grand structure, the more the gray, rocky dirt he was walking on, subtly became darker, so the building was surrounded by black, and in what seemed like minutes, the young awe-struck boy found himself at the steps of the building.

_It looks like a…temple_, he thought after taking a closer look around. Looking up the almost unending stairs in front of him, Anakin couldn't help but feel a slight sense of foreboding. But despite his misgivings about climbing the steps, he felt as if some unseen force was beckoning him inside. He could almost hear it whispering to him, dark and captivating.

Almost against his will, Anakin put his foot on the step in front of him, beginning the ascent into the majestic temple.

He could clearly hear his footsteps against the black granite, as the air around him was oddly silent; it was as though the entire planet was holding its breath, waiting for Anakin to enter. One by one, he made his way up the steps, painstakingly slow, until finally, he reached the massive front doors of the temple.

Strangely, one of the huge palatial doors was slightly open, just enough for a child Anakin's size to squeeze in. The darkness surrounding him seemed to be whispering more urgently now, and Anakin proceeded through the enormous ebony door inside.

The temple was dimly lit, and Anakin could barely see the huge pillars and massive antechamber he stood in. Dimly he registered the strange red writing on the black walls, and the markings that covered almost every surface in sight. As if in a daze, he obeyed the whispering darkness and calmly strode down one of the darkly extravagant hallways, heading towards a dull red light at the end.

When he reached the end, Anakin discovered that the dim red light was coming from a small cube sitting in a small arrangement of dangerous looking objects, arranged like a shrine. Upon further inspection, Anakin decided that the only thing the square object could be was a holocube. _But why would a holocube possibly be in here?_

But thoughts of the cube fled from his mind as Anakin caught sight of a small, cylindrical object sitting nearby. _No way…_

Hesitantly, almost afraid to touch it, Anakin reached out his hand a picked it up, running his small fingers over its small crevices in adoration and amazement. His finger stopped when they reached a small button towards one end of the handle, and, taking a deep breath, Anakin pushed it.

_This is so wizard,_ he thought, staring at the long, red beam of light protruding from one end in unrestrained delight.

TBC…


	2. Recon

**Forgot the disclaimer last time…whoops**. **Diclaimer: I do not own any part of Star Wars. ******

**Thanks to Asrayu, elven-cat2 and Skywalker05 for reviewing. hands out cookies**

**It's kinda short, I know. I couldn't find any other way to end the chapter. ******

**This chapter's from Obi's point of view. Ani makes his entrance. Hope you like it! Let me know what you think!!**

Chapter One: Recon

_**Ten years later…**_

_Jedi Temple-Master Kenobi's quarters_

_Beep. Beep. Beep._

Obi-wan slowly raised his head and blinked the sleep from his eyes as he looked around his quarters for the source of the noise that had woken him.

_Beep. Beep._

Throwing back the sheets, he grabbed his robe, pulled it on, and walked over to the com. _Only the council would call this early in the morning._

_Beep. Beep._

Finally, when Obi-wan pressed the 'Accept Call' button, the irritating noise immediately disappeared, and the blue holographic image of Mace Windu appeared.

"Master Kenobi," he said, inclining his head slightly to acknowledge Obi-wan, "Your presence is required in the Council chambers. Please make your way here as soon as possible."

"Yes master, I will be there shortly," Obi-wan responded, bowing a little at the waist.

"We will be expecting you."

A second later, Mace's image winked out. Obi-wan sighed and ribbed his eyes tiredly as he went in search of his robes. _I don't even have time for a cup of caf…_

Ten minutes later, he walked through the doors to the council chamber. Striding over to the center of the room where he noticed two others standing, he gave a low bow towards Masters Yoda and Windu. Glancing again at the others in the chamber, he noticed with a start that it was his old friend Siri Tachi and her apprentice Ferus Olin.

"Master Kenobi," Master Yoda spoke, pulling Obi-wan's attention back to the Masters, "Sorry to have called you here so early, we are. A very important matter, this is."

Mace continued, "A very short time ago the Council received a message from Supreme Chancellor Palpatine expressing his concern about the Sith Holocrons. He has heard the rumors regarding the possibility of Count Dooku may be a Sith Lord, and he has requested that we dispatch a team of Jedi to retrieve the remaining holocrons."

Obi-wan frowned in confusion, "But I thought all of the holocrons were in the archives here in the temple."

Yoda shook his head. "Still on Korriban, vital Sith Holocrons are. A crucial part of Sith training, these are. Able to learn a great deal from them, Count Dooku would be."

Obi-wan thought that his stomach might have jumped to his throat sometime during this explanation. He wasn't sure what bothered him more-the fact that more holocrons were not under the guard of the Jedi, or the fact that it seemed Obi-wan would have to go to Korriban, a planet in abundance of evil, in order to retrieve them.

"Why weren't these holocrons retrieved when the others were first brought to the temple?" Siri finally spoke. Obi-wan did not need to use the force to tell she was as apprehensive of the situation as he was; she looked paler than normal and looked very on edge.

"The Jedi were not aware of these holocrons until long after the holos in our possession were secured. Since the Jedi were confident that the Sith had been destroyed, it did not seem necessary to obtain them," Master Windu explained, folding his hands under his chin.

"Now that returned, the Sith have, critical, it is, that brought to the temple, theses holocrons are. To bring them here, your mission is," Yoda added.

"Since you are the only Jedi with experience with the Sith, Obi-wan, you are to lead the expedition to Korriban. Master Tachi and her apprentice will be accompanying you, since you have worked together in the past," Mace informed him calmly.

Obi-wan took a deep breath and calmed himself, releasing his fear into the force. He and only two other Jedi, one of whom was not even knighted, were going to Korriban alone?

"So few are coming?" Obi-wan voiced aloud.

"Korriban has been deserted for many hundreds of years. You should encounter very little trouble." Master Windu answered, "All other information is in your ship's database. May the force be with you."

Obi-wan bowed with the others and left the chambers, but he could not shake off the feeling of doubt surrounding him. _I have a bad feeling about this…_

* * *

_Korriban_

The team of Jedi approached Korriban in the small Jedi starship slowly, inspecting for a place to land. It looked as normal as any other planet, and the average passerby would likely not realize the evil that the planet really held.

But it _felt_ horrible. Obi-wan could feel the Dark Side surrounding the planet, reaching out, whispering to him, tempting him. It was so abundant he almost couldn't breathe. Glancing over at the others, he saw Siri trembling almost imperceptibly, and Ferus had his eyes closed, taking deep breaths.

"There it is," Siri said, pointing at the map on the navscreen. The data on the ship had told them that the holocrons were located in an ancient Sith temple, which was in a very small valley.

Carefully, Siri maneuvered the ship so it landed off to the side of the temple and pressed the button that would lower the ramp. Striding down the ramp, Obi-wan could feel the Dark Side growing and becoming thicker as he approached the Temple.

Coming around towards the front of the temple, he saw numerous statues of Sith masters, some he recognized, and others he didn't. Not surprisingly, all of them were dated at least a thousand of years ago. Coming to the end of the line of statues, he stopped in front of one that had no date on it. _Darth Plagueis_, the statue read. Obi-wan didn't recognize the name, _It couldn't be recent, could it?_

Shaking his head slightly, Obi-wan dismissed the thought. This place was long deserted.

Finally reaching the front and stopping to look at the temple fully, he was struck with the majesty of the structure. It stood at least two hundred feet tall, was almost completely black, with a graceful elegance that even the Jedi Temple didn't have. He was almost awed by it. _Almost_. He would be, if the Dark Side would recede and stop smothering him.

Taking a deep breath with much difficulty, Obi-wan mustered up his strength, and strenuously lifted his foot onto the first of many steps. Warily and mistrustfully, Obi-wan began the long climb to the entrance of the temple. Dimly he registered the footsteps of Siri and Ferus behind him, but the majority of his concentration was spent on keeping the shadows surrounding him out of his mind.

Obi-wan had expected the doors of the temple to be closed, possibly even barred, to keep away intruders. He had been hoping that it would be so well protected that they would not be able to get in-would not _have_ to go in. So it was to his great surprise and dismay that one of the grand front doors, at least twenty feet tall, was open enough to allow a normal sized human to just squeeze through.

"Why do you suppose it's open, Master?" Ferus asked timidly, clearly shaken by the abundance of evil present on planet, "You'd think they would have wanted it kept closed."

"You'd think," Obi-wan replied. He agreed with Ferus. When the Sith lost the war over the Old Republic, they would have done everything in their power to limit the Jedi's victory. So why would they leave their most precious temple's door practically wide open?

_It makes no sense,_ Obi-wan thought, confused. Briefly his mind went back to the undated statue, but he quickly pushed it out of his mind again. _Impossible. The Sith haven't been here in over a millennia._

Walking up to the grand ebony door, Obi-wan hesitated, then squeezed himself through with very little struggle. Siri and Ferus had no difficulty at all following him in.

The antechamber of the temple was huge. Spiraling red and black pillars held up the high ceiling, and at the other end, Obi-wan could make out stairs leading to different hallways.

"Look down there," Siri said, pointing down a hall directly to his right, "do you see that light?"

He did. Down at the very end of the hallway, there was a faint red light held up a few feet off the ground. Signaling for the others to follow him, Obi-wan walked quickly to the other end, where he took a closer look at the light.

It wasn't a light: it was a cube.

_It looks like we found one of our holocrons._

Obi-wan barely had time to finish the thought before his, Siri's and Ferus's lightsabers all flew off their belts into the hand of the figure now holding a red beam of light to Obi-wan's neck.

**HAHAHA!! I love cliffies. I'll give cookies to anyone who reviews!!**


	3. Discoveries

**Disclaimer: Star Wars and everything in it belongs to Mr. George. I'm just playing in his sandbox.**

**Thank you to CherryBlossoms016, Vila Restal and ILDV for reviewing. You rock!! **

**Yes, Anakin has been learning mostly from the Sith Holocrons. **_**Mostly**_**. More major characters come into play in this one.**

**Chapter 2: Discoveries**

_Sith Temple_

Obi-wan stared at the figure in shock. Of all the things that could have happened, this was the absolute worst, not to mention the most unexpected. He, Siri and Ferus were unarmed and facing a living, breathing Sith.

There was no doubt that this…person…was a Sith. He was most likely human, stood about six feet tall with pale skin that suggested having not often left the temple. But the thing that stood out and made Obi-wan second guess his humanity was the deep yellow color of his eyes-the same eyes of the Sith Obi-wan had killed ten years ago.

He had been out checking his food traps when he sensed them. He didn't believe it at first-after ten years of talking to a hologram; he was probably losing his mind. But then he saw their ship. Running around to a smaller entrance he'd discovered long ago, he quickly entered his precious temple to wait for them.

He couldn't understand why they were here. Jedi, here. He wasn't surprised that they didn't sense him coming. He'd wondered for years if he'd ever get a chance to test his cloaking skills.

The shocked look on the dumbfounded Jedi's face was worth all the years spent honing his skills.

He held his light saber at the neck of the one who appeared to be the leader and stayed fully alert. '_Never underestimate Jedi'_, Darth Bane's holo had told him. He could remember when he had first found out the significance of the cube…

_**This is so wizard**__, he thought, staring at the long, red beam of light protruding from one end in unrestrained delight. Grinning broadly, he looked away from the light saber and focused on the cube once more._

_It looked very insignificant; if everything around it hadn't suggested otherwise, he would have thought it completely unimportant._

_Once again, Anakin could hear the Darkness whispering to him, trying to tell him something. But this time he could understand it. __**'Touch it…'**_

_Listening to the voice had gotten him this far, hadn't it? What could it hurt? _

_With trembling fingers, he reached out towards it, hesitating when his finger hovered centimeters away from the glowing red surface._

'_**Touch it…'**_

_He brushed his fingertips against the top of the cube. Immediately, a small holographic figure sprang up from the top, turning to look at Anakin. The figure looked intimidating; though in reality he was only about a foot tall, the sight of him made Anakin tremble slightly._

_**What did I do? What is this thing? **__He thought, staring at it in confusion. _

"_Hello, child," the figure said, in what was meant to be a kind tone. But despite its efforts, the man's voice came out sharp and intimidating. _

"_Wh-who are you?" Anakin stuttered, hating himself for sounding so weak. _

"_My name is Darth Bane," the figure responded in the same commanding voice, "Welcome to Korriban," he added with a smile that did not look welcoming at all._

"Who are you?" the female Jedi asked, looking extremely mistrustful.

"That is unimportant," he replied, speaking to another person for the first time in a decade, "Why are you here?"

"We only came for the holocrons. If you could simply give them to us, this could be settled peacefully," the lead Jedi said, seeming to have found his voice at last.

'_Peace is a lie. There is only passion.'_ "The holocrons will remain here. They will not be moved,"

A brief flicker of annoyance showed in the lead Jedi's face before it disappeared.

"The holocrons must be secured in a safe location, or-"

"This is a safe location," The dark figure stated adamantly, "They will not be moved."

The other Jedi, the younger one, spoke finally, "So you know where the others are, then?"

"Yes," he replied, his gaze flicking over to the other Jedi, "Not that it's any of your concern."

The blond Jedi looked as though she was about to say something else, but he cut her off quickly, saying, "Enough questions. Start walking."

* * *

The man walked behind them and guided them to the antechamber where they'd first entered, and down one of the large hallways Obi-wan had spotted only minutes before. Now that they were moving much slower, he took his time observing his surroundings more closely and just then noticed the strange symbols and writing covering the walls. 

"What language is that?"

"Ancient Sith," the enigmatic figure replied, pushing him forward slightly when he paused, "Keep moving."

They walked for at least half a mile before they came to the end of the hallway and the Sith said, "In here," Pointing into a small, shadowy room to their left. There was hardly anything in it; there was a small cot in one corner, and what could have been a com system by the front of the door. _This must be where he lives._

"Stand over there," the figure said, pointing the end of his still-lit light saber toward an empty corner, glaring at them as they moved to follow his instructions. Once they were in the corner, the figure touched a control panel on what Obi-wan had thought was the com unit, and ray shields sprang into place.

_How original,_ Obi-wan thought sarcastically, realizing they were now trapped.

"Who are you?" Siri asked the man again. "You might as well tell us what to address you as."

The man did not seem to hear her, as he continued pressing buttons on the console in front of him.

Finally he stopped, and turned to look at her. "You may call me Vader." He said before turning back around and pressing more buttons.

* * *

He couldn't believe he'd told the Jedi his name. He had actually answered their questions, like some helpless little kid. 

Furiously, he continued to push buttons on the ancient com system, willing it to work. _Come on, you piece of junk…_

Normally he would simply activate one of the holocrons and ask advice from one of the long dead Sith, but he needed more contemporary advice for this kind of situation.

All of a sudden the com lit up and started beeping, signaling that it was finally working. _I __**really **__need to work on this thing._

"What are you doing?" The youngest Jedi asked him curiously. Vader ignored him. "Is that a com?"

He let out a huff of annoyance and quickly glanced back at the young Jedi and glared fiercely. "Be quiet."

The Jedi let out a sigh, but was silent afterwards. Turning back to the com, he entered the proper number, but hesitated over initiating the call. If he was going to ask for instruction, he would need more information. Lowering his hand to rest by his side, he turned back to face the Jedi once more.

"What are your names?" He asked, looking each of them in the eye. He felt their mild surprise through the force; he supposed they had given up on him ever asking that question.

One of the older Jedi took a deep breath and said, "I am Master Obi-wan Kenobi. This is Master Siri Tachi and her Padawan, Ferus Olin."

Vader nodded and turned away again. His fingers hovered over the 'commence com' button, taking a deep breath and trying to use his fear to his advantage. '_Make your fear your strength.'_

Hesitating once more for only part of a second, he pushed his fingers down onto the consul, initiating the call. It rang for a few minutes while the Jedi peered curiously from their place in the corner. Finally, his call was answered, and a hooded figure sprang up from the pad in the center of the com, staring at Vader with the same yellow eyes that Veder himself had.

"Mster Sidious," Vader bowed respectfully.

"Greetings, Lord Vader."

* * *

_Naboo_

A teenaged girl dressed in flaming red and orange robes strode down an elegant hallway, stopping at a door, which opened at the touch of a button. Peering inside, she addressed the figure sitting at her desk, peering at a datapad.

"Excuse me, Senator," The woman look up at her as she continued, "The Jedi Council is returning your earlier com."

"Thank you, Corde," Senator Amidala responded. The girl bowed respectfully and left the room.

When she was gone, Padme looked over at her datapad, but did not continue reading. She was thinking about the discussion she was about to have with the Council about a good friend of hers. _I've always respected the Jedi Coucil, but this is crossing the line. Imagine sending him to such a dangerous place practically on his own…_

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	4. submition

**Disclaimer: Star Wars and everything in it belongs to Mr. George. I'm just playing with his toys. I'll put them back when I'm done.**

**You find out how Palpatine found Anakin in this one. **

**I'm going on vacation this weekend, so there might not be another update until next week, and then I have a bunch of stuff with band, so they won't be as frequent. ******

Chapter 3: Discussions.

"_Is there a problem, Lord Vader?"_ Master Sidious asked calmly.

Vader inclined his head and answered, "Yes, Master. Three Jedi are here on Korriban; two Masters and one Padawan."

Sidious smirked slightly. "_Yes, I know. Do you have them under control_?"

"They are confined and unarmed, master." Vader responded, glancing briefly at the Jedi. He had already felt their shock and fear; looking at them only confirmed what they were feeling. This was most likely the last thing they'd expected him to do.

"_It may not be safe to stay on Korriban any longer, my boy_," The Sith Lord stated unexpectedly.

"M-my Lord?" Vader stuttered in surprise. "What do you mean?"

Sidious let out a small sigh and continued, "_Once the Jedi realize that their little…expedition…has failed, they will undoubtedly send reinforcements to aid the Jedi in your custody. Three Jedi you may be able to handle, Lord Vader, but I have_ _no doubt the Jedi will send their best to assist them._"

"Y-yes, my lord," Vader stumbled, not looking at the holo. _Leave Korriban…_That thought hadn't crossed his mind in years, not since he'd first met Lord Sidious.

_-Flashback-_

_Anakin silently crept around the temple towards the ship that had just landed in front of it. He'd been here for three years and seen no one; who could possibly be here now?_

_As soon as he started wondering, the ramp on the ship lowered and a dark, hooded figure stepped down and strode purposefully into the temple. Following him silently, Anakin watched him proceed down the hallway to his right, where the holocron of Darth Bane rested._

_Seething that someone might be coming to take it away, he snuck faster, until he was about six feet behind the hooded man, reaching for his light saber, he was about to ignite it and demand that the person explain himself when-_

"_How much longer were you planning on hiding from me, my boy?"_

_Anakin froze stock-still where he stood. Eyes wide in shock, he could only stare as the fugure slowly turned around and smiled at him in dark amusement. _

"_Your cloaking skills are to be commended, child, but you cannot hide from me," The man continued still smirking at Anakin, "I am Darth Sidious. I expected I would find you here."_

_He expected to find…? Standing up straight and narrowing his eyes at Sidious, he looked over him, trying to figure out exactly who this person was. If he was telling the truth, he most likely was a Sith Lord, and was to be obeyed. But if not…_

"_Who __**exactly**__ are you?" Anakin asked, his hand still holding his light saber, and his eyes still narrowed in suspicion._

"_I am the Lord Darth Sidious, Sith Master and former apprentice of the late Darth Plagueis," His eyes roamed over Anakin, an almost approving look in his eye, "You seem to know how to handle that weapon, boy."_

"_A bit," Anakin agreed, still trying to figure the situation out. It seemed as though Sidious was telling the truth. "Why are you here?"_

_Sidious let out a low cackle and replied, "Why, the same reason you are here, my boy. To learn from the holocrons. Not that there is much left for me to learn, but one can never know enough."_

_The smirk was gone from the Sith's face as he looked Anakin over once more._

"_Follow me, boy," he said before setting off back down the hallway at a brisk pace. This time, however, he strode through the antechamber and down one of the large hallways within. Stopping before a door, he turned back to Anakin._

"_You've never been in here, have you, my boy?" _

_Anakin shook his head. "That door won't open."_

_Sidious smiled and said, "Yes it will. You just need to know how." And he reached out to touch a seemingly unremarkable patch on the wall and, right before Anakin's eyes, a small portion of the wall receded, revealing a control panel. Anakin stared at the opening, completely unaware that his jaw was hanging open. _

_He'd tried so hard to get that door open. It was the only part in the entire temple that he didn't know by heart. It made him feel so stupid now that he knew the door was so easy to open._

_Coming back to reality once he realized that Lord Sidious had opened the door, he shook his head slightly to bring himself back on-planet and went inside. Once through the doorway, he couldn't figure out what had inspired anyone to ever lock the door at all. The room was practically empty. All that was there was a small cot that looked around a century old and what could be…a com system?_

"_You know what this is, don't you?" Sidious asked smiling knowingly. Anakin simply nodded at him, overwhelmed by everything that was happening. "And I assume you know how to use it?"_

_Another nod._

"_Good."_

"And what of the Jedi here, my lord?" Vader asked, snapping out of his reverie.

Sidious's eyes flickered over to where the Jedi were sitting captive. "Do whatever you deem necessary."

"Yes, my lord," Vader responded obediently, before he cut the transmission.

* * *

It was very unlike Obi-wan to be this nervous, especially because of a barely trained teenager. But no matter who this boy was, one thing was becoming increasingly clear: those holocrons _had_ to be secured.

Shortly after ending the com, Vader had turned to them, released the shields, and ordered them to start moving again. Obi-wan had absolutely no idea where they were going; it was not a feeling he particularly enjoyed.

They had entered a long hallway that had what looked to be very thick, metal doors on either side. Obi-wan had a very, very bad feeling about his whole situation, and it kept getting worse.

"Stop."

Vader abruptly halted at the end of the hallway and pointed to Obi-wan.

"You, in there," he said, gesturing towards an open door. Obi-wan hesitated. He wasn't sure what would be worse, saying no to Vader and facing him defenseless, or facing whatever was in the room.

"_Now_," Vader commanded, sounded annoyed. Flickering his gaze over to Siri, he saw her nod. Sighing deeply, he cautiously walked through the doorway, peering inside apprehensively…and heard the thick, durasteel door shut and lock behind him.

Sighing Obi-wan turned back to the door. To think the boy had made him uneasy…he didn't even have the sense to know that a lock couldn't hold a Jedi. Annoyed, he placed his hand on the door and reached out his mind to unlock the door.

Nothing. It didn't budge. He couldn't even feel the lock.

_Oh, that's not good…_

* * *

"You, padawan, in here. The other master goes in there," Vader said carelessly. The remaining Jedi both looked around the room nervously before stepping inside. It was pathetic. If he was going to kill them, he wouldn't have bothered to bring them all the way down to the prisoner's cells.

Rolling his eyes, he waved his hand slightly and made the two doors slam behind the Jedi. Now, with that out of the way…

Turning on his heel, he strode back down the hallway into the main antechamber. Walking right past the intricate writings that fascinated him years ago, he paced right up to the large entrance doors and went outside. Getting up and down the stairs used to be a huge ordeal for him-one reason he was so glad to find other doors inside-but now it took him less than ten minutes to get to the ground, where he then walked around the side of the temple. Directly in front of him was the Jedi's ship.

When the Jedi had first landed, he had been too preoccupied with keeping them under control to think what the entire situation meant. Not until Master Sidious suggested it did Vader realize he could actually leave. The thought was so mind boggling he could barely even think about it.

Still reeling from his realization, Vader slowly, almost reverently approached the ship. It was rather unremarkable for a ship, but still…

Speeding up slightly, Vader strode up the ramp and into the ship with renewed vigor. He couldn't believe it. It was just unreal.

Grinning, he started on his way to the cockpit-and stopped dead in his tracks. Almost exactly two feet to his left was a floor length mirror.

Vader hadn't looked in a mirror in over ten years.

When he'd first come to Korriban at the age of nine, Vader was about three and a half feet tall, tan, blonde and blue-eyed with a round, innocent face. Now, he could barely recognize himself. Staring back at him was a six foot tall nineteen year old with dark, dark brown hair, very pale skin and bloodshot eyes with sickly yellow irises. His face was no longer round or innocent; his features were sharp, almost accusing, with a half-sneer frozen on his lips.

Vader simply stood there, staring at his reflection, for a very long time before he made his feet move in the direction of the cockpit.

* * *

"_I understand your concern, Senator, but I have every confidence that Master Kenobi is perfectly safe,_" the hologram of Master Windu said, looking very patient, "_And as for his company, while the Jedi Council would be much happier with a larger expedition, the Order is simply spread too thin to send more Jedi with Obi-wan unless he is in extreme danger._"

"So you are in contact with him?" Padme asked confidently, "You are absolutely sure that planet is no longer dangerous?"

Something that Padme couldn't quite identify flashed in Mace's expression.

"_You have my assurances that Obi-wan is perfectly alright," _Master Windu said.

Padme nodded, eyeing Mace suspiciously. "Thank you for your time, Master Windu."

Mace's hologram nodded and winked out. Padme stood there for several moments, thinking things over._ Something's not right here…_


	5. Captivity

* * *

Chapter 4: Captivity

Obi-wan could not remember ever being so thirsty. Every time he swallowed it felt like sandpaper was going down his throat. When the teenage sith had locked him in here, he seemed to have forgotten bare necessities, such as food and water.

Unfortunately, that was the only thing he forgot.

Several hours ago-or at least, he thought it was several hours ago, as he had no way to tell time in here-Obi-wan had deemed it impossible to get out of this room without outside help. The door and walls seemed to have been made of some kind of substance that blocked him from using the force. He'd never felt like this before; he'd encountered ysalimiri, which pushed the force away completely, but never something like this. He could _feel_ the force, but he couldn't use it. It was as though he was paralyzed, yet unable to move.

It was absolute torture, which was probably what the sith had in mind when they built this place. Briefly he wondered about the other Jedi trapped in this place. Siri would be able to handle this, he was sure. Ferus, on the other hand, was just a Padawan. It was unlikely, at this stage in hi training, that he was anywhere near prepared for this. He was just unable to comprehend the situation they were in.

He probably still thought, despite being trapped in these cells with no way of getting out that someone would come and they would be miraculously saved.

Obi-wan knew how unlikely that was. The chances that the Jedi Council would realize something was wrong in time to send rescue were very slim. This Sith prison was ingenious. They weren't cut off from the Force, so the Council could still sense them, and would assume they were still alive.

However, with no way of manipulating the Force, the Jedi had no way of calling for help. What Obi-wan knew Ferus didn't realize, and Siri most likely did, was that, short of a miracle, they were going to die here.

* * *

Padme Amidala was a very logical person. There were very few instances in her life when she had ever done anything without thinking it through very carefully and weighing the possible consequences. Unfortunately for the Jedi council, this was one of those times.

The Council had no reason to lie to her-chances were Obi-wan was perfectly alright, just as they said. But something was telling her otherwise. She had no idea why, but she had the strongest feeling that something was horribly wrong, and that she needed to help Obi-wan, and fast.

And that was exactly what she intended to do.

* * *

Sorry this chapter is so short. I should have another up pretty soon. Happy Holidays everyone! 


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